Rep. Pascrell on Trump’s First 100 Days of Trade
Ranking Democrat on Trade Subcommittee calls Trump’s opening act ‘impotent’

PATERSON, N.J. – U.S. Representative Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ), ranking member of the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Trade, issued the following statement on the status of trade promises at the 100-day mark of President Trump’s regime.

“On the campaign trail, President Trump talked a good game on trade that appealed to workers and middle-class America. But after seeing him in action, his promises ring hollow and his effectiveness on trade has proven impotent at best,” Rep. Pascrell said. “This was a major plank of his campaign, but the President has come up short on protecting jobs and buttressing the American economy. If trade problems were solved with blustery tweets, we’d be the global standard. But they’re not. America deserves bipartisan action and we’ve put solutions on the table. We need more from this President on trade.”

With 100 days under his belt, President Trump has broken a number of promises on trade.

JOB CREATION AND WORKER PROTECTIONS

From “Buy American, Hire American” to protecting and fighting for American workers, President Trump has made a lot of promises to be on the side of working people. But he allowed the Keystone XL pipeline to be built with foreign steel, reduced funding for job training programs, and cut worker safety regulations.

•             PROMISE: Candidate Trump said his policy is ‘Buy American and Hire American’

President Donald Trump: “We will follow two simple rules: Buy American and Hire American.” [Inaugural Address, 1/20/17]

•             BROKEN: President Trump allows Big Oil to build pipelines with foreign steel

AP: “The Keystone XL oil pipeline won’t use American steel in its construction, despite what President Donald Trump says.” [AP, 3/4/17]

OUTSOURCING

When he was on the campaign trail, President Trump pledged to stop jobs from leaving our country—on “day one.” Yet nearly 100 days into his term, President Trump has failed to do anything legislatively to stop outsourcing.

•             PROMISE: Stop companies from shipping jobs overseas

Then-Candidate Donald Trump: “We are living through the greatest jobs theft in the history of our world. Look, no country has ever lost jobs like us. They’re sucked out of our country, the companies leave, they fire everybody, they go to Mexico and many other countries. It never happened before like this. And we’re going to stop it day one. It’s so easy to stop. It’s so easy. So easy to stop. A Trump administration will stop the jobs from leaving America and we will stop the jobs from leaving Florida. Promise.” [Campaign Remarks in Sarasota, Florida, 11/7/16]

Trump Contract with the American Voter: “I will work with Congress to introduce the following broader legislative measures and fight for their passage within the first 100 days of my Administration: End the Offshoring Act[:] Establishes tariffs to discourage companies from laying off their workers in order to relocate in other countries and ship their products back to the U.S. tax-free.” [Trump Contract with the American Voter, accessed 11/9/16]

•             BROKEN: No efforts to pass End The Offshoring Act

Axios: “Tariffs: Trump promised to work with Congress to introduce the ‘End the Offshoring Act’ during his first 100 days to keep companies from moving jobs overseas and ship products back to the U.S. tax-free. That hasn’t happened.” [Axios, 4/12/17]

CURRENCY MANIPULATION

President Trump talked tough on China and trade when he was a candidate. One hundred days in his term, he has broken promise after promise on trade—even reversing himself on naming China a currency manipulator.

•             PROMISE: Hold China accountable by labeling it a currency manipulator

Then-Candidate Donald Trump: “On day one of a Trump administration, the U.S. Treasury Department will designate China a currency manipulator.” [WSJ Op-Ed, 11/9/15]

•             BROKEN: President Trump refuses to label China a currency manipulator

Wall Street Journal: Mr. Trump, in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, also said his administration won’t label China a currency manipulator in a report due this week. … “They’re not currency manipulators,” Mr. Trump said. [WSJ, 4/12/17]

TRADE AGREEMENTS

•             PROMISE: Renegotiate NAFTA on day one

Then-Candidate Donald Trump: “If I win, day one, we are going to announce our plans to renegotiate NAFTA.” [Campaign Event in Greensboro, NC Remarks, 10/14/16]

•             BROKEN: No “real” negotiations on NAFTA

Bloomberg: “The U.S. government probably won’t begin ‘real’ negotiations to revamp the North American Free Trade Agreement until later this year, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said. ‘I would like the results tomorrow, but that is not the way the world works,’ Ross said Wednesday in an interview with Bloomberg Television. He said it probably will be ‘the latter part of this year before real negotiations get under way.’” [Bloomberg, 3/8/17]

•             PROMISE: Withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership

Then-Candidate Donald Trump: Here are 7 steps I would pursue right away to bring back our jobs. One: I am going to withdraw the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which has not yet been ratified.” [Donald Trump’s Jobs Plan Speech, 6/28/16]

•             BROKEN: The reality is, the TPP was “dead on arrival” long before Trump’s presidency

Washington Post: “And [President Obama’s] bid to ratify the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement, the centerpiece of a foreign-policy ‘pivot to Asia,’ now appears dead on arrival thanks to grass-roots revolts in both parties.” [Washington Post, 8/16/16]

DEMOCRATIC PROPOSALS TO CREATE JOBS, STOP OUTSOURCING, AND FIX UNFAIR TRADE

In contrast, Democrats have proposals to create jobs, stop outsourcing, and fix unfair trade – like the Currency Reform For Fair Trade Act (link) and the Bring Jobs Home Act (link), both sponsored by Rep. Pascrell. President Trump would be wise to support Democrats’ legislation to actually do something to Buy and Hire American, stop companies from sending jobs overseas, and level the trade playing field with China.